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MELBOURNE - Andy Murray will face Rafael Nadal across the net for the first time on Monday in what he hopes will be the first installment of an enthralling rivalry between two of the young guns in the sport.
With a place in the Australian Open last eight
up for grabs, no quarter will be given in what should turn out to be a baseline slugfest.
While Nadal burst off the blocks to win two French Open titles and has spent a record number of weeks as world number two, Murray has proved to be more of a long distance runner and has made steady progress up the rankings over the past 18 months.
Despite being considered the favorite, Nadal made a surprising admission.
"I have more chances to lose than to win... because he's a very good player," the second seed said.
"He has a chance to beat me and go to the final and win the tournament because he is a very good player."
But anyone who has followed the Spaniard's progress over the past two years, knows that he enjoys toying with his opponents by playing down his chances.
"I'm looking forward to it," the 15th-seeded Scottish teenager said.
"It'll be a good test for me to see how well I do against him. I want to see what problems I can cause for him.
"It's going to be a close match."
Quick workout
While the pair take center stage, marathon man David Nalbandian will be praying for a quick workout against German 12th seed Tommy Haas.
The Argentine ironman has already been on court for more than nine hours and has had to save multiple matchpoints in both his first and third-round encounters.
But he will do well not to dwell on the past as he has lost both of their previous meetings.
Tomas Berdych will be aiming to join teenage sweetheart Lucie Safarova in the last eight when he takes on Russian third seed Nikolay Davydenko. James Blake will run into Lleyton Hewitt's conqueror Fernando Gonzalez.
Among the women, top seed Maria Sharapova will be attempting to restore order in the women's draw following the exit of five seeds on Sunday, when defending champion Amelie Mauresmo was the most high-profile casualty.
With no Russians left in the bottom half of the field, Sharapova hopes to preserve her place when she faces compatriot Vera Zvonareva.
Fourth seed Kim Clijsters will be aiming to keep a quarter-final date with her friend Martina Hingis. The Belgian will take on 15th seed Daniela Hantuchova while sixth seed Hingis will aim to overcome China's Li Na.
- REUTERS